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Used van hero November: Ford Transit (2014-present)

The Ford Transit named Glass’s Used Commercial Hero for November 2018.

Each month, Glass’s Commercial Vehicle editors name the current Used Van Hero in the UK market. The model they believe offers versatility, durability and outstanding value for money.

Andy Picton, Chief Commercial Vehicle Editor: ‘When traders need a new van, they often say they need a Transit, the Ford brand is synonymous with those needing to shift loads. For over 50 years the Transit has provided sterling service and is recognised as the ‘go to’ van for millions of businesses.’

When was it on sale?

Companies trip over themselves to make their brands household names. Few brands engrain themselves in the lexicon that they are synonymous with the products themselves. Yet the MK1 Ford Transit, first produced in the UK at Ford’s Southampton and Langley plants in October 1965, created a brand name in the UK that became the common noun for Light Commercial vehicles across the UK.

The latest generation, now built in Turkey for predominantly European and Asian markets and in the US for North and South American markets, made its first appearance on UK roads in 2014, offering a complete range of drive trains vans, body styles and derivatives.

Why?

Still perceived by many as British, the versatility of the Transit provides one of the best commercial vehicle solutions on the market. The Transit has a strong following, from both large fleets to self-employed contractors with vehicles able to deal with demanding customer requirements. Ford have an excellent dealer network and offer competitively priced service and maintenance packages.

What’s good?

The latest versions retain the Transit’s renowned practicality, and robustness. The choice on offer is considerable, with 450 model variants in total consisting of three van lengths, two roof heights, front-wheel drive, rear wheel drive or all-wheel drive and a choice of three engine outputs.

Overall, the Transit is more refined and better to drive than many of its rivals having a six-speed manual gearbox with a smooth positive change. Overall fuel consumption is acceptable for such a large van. The steering is true and the visibility from the driver’s seat is good. A full height bulkhead protects the robustly designed quality cabin from the large load area.

What’s bad?

A polarising design puts some customers off, as the design does not follow the styling of the other members of the Transit family. The increased size of the current Transit versus the previous generation means a reduction in payload on pre Model Year 19 vehicles can be too much of a compromise for some. Check for any outstanding recalls regarding seats, seatbelts.

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